Welcome to the Neighborhood
by edsharin
Summary: AU. Lucas moves to a New York apartment after living in Texas for two years. Maya Hart ends up being his next door neighbor. Join them on their journey to becoming best friends (or maybe more?) Summary sucks but story doesn't. Rated T because I'd rather be safe than sorry. Please review!
1. Chapter 1

**Hi everyone! I wrote this pretty fast so please be nice. Anyways, hope you enjoy the story!**

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"Hey, you with the cowboy hat. Yes you, Ranger Rick, wanna help me out?"

Lucas turned his head at the sound of a voice filling the previously empty corridor. His eyes adjusted to the light, and honestly, he thought he saw an angel. A woman stood right behind him, her blonde hair tangled around her arms as she struggled to balance two pizza boxes, a plastic bag hooked around her bicep, and keys that seemed to be refusing to go into the lock. She glanced at him again, her blue eyes meeting his in an annoyed fashion.

"Oops, sorry about that. Lemme just-" Lucas gently maneuvered around the girl and took the two pizza boxes from her small arms. She sighed with relief or maybe exhaustion and proceeded to click the key into the lock. Lucas looked down at the boxes and almost felt sorry that he couldn't eat any of it. His drive from Texas had been exhausting, especially since a table and an ironing board was shoved against him the whole drive up. Finally, the girl managed to unlock the door and used her foot to push it open all the while grabbing the boxes from Lucas's sweaty hands. The blonde beauty was too involved with trying to keep her door open to notice the subtle way Lucas wiped his hands on his torn jeans.

"So is that all ma'am?" He winced as the girl smirked and shifted her eyes towards him. Lucas hated the fact that his Texas accent was so pronounced. It's not his fault that Pappy Joe had begged him to stay at the farm for two whole years. If it wasn't for that, Lucas would probably still be in Med school, studying to be a vet. _Oh well, I did what I did and I can't change that._

Her voice distracted him from his thoughts. "Nah, I think that's it." She paused and looked around, almost as if she hoped someone would walk up the stairs that laid to the left of their apartments to ease their conversation into nothingness.

"So… Do you like live here now?" She had to physically strain her head up to meet his eye level. Lucas was almost about to bend his knees to meet her eye level as a joke but he knew they weren't _that_ close. "Yeah, I live in that apartment right there," he said as he gestured to the wooden door with the number 25 printed on it behind the pair. "I just got here this morning."

Now the girl was intrigued. "Oh, got here from where? I'm guessing down south, since y'know." She gestured absently at the cowboy hat resting atop Lucas's head. He removed it and tucked it underneath his arm, blushing slightly. _Damm you Zay for thinking that wearing these hats would make people like us more._ Zay was Lucas's best friend who moved to New York with Lucas. They were supposed to share the apartment but Zay had changed his mind at the last minute, leaving Lucas with an apartment and no couch.

"Actually you're pretty spot on. I'm from Texas. Just moved here today. Never even been to New York before now." The girl's face expression was enough to get him to stop talking. She appeared dumbfounded and her mouth was open so wide that Lucas's mother would immediately shoo the imaginary flies away if she had seen the girl's face.

"Are you serious? Never? Dude, I grew up here and let me tell you what my opinion of the big apple is: it's the best." A smile spread across her pale face and her eyes warmed up with whatever she was thinking about. She returned to earth a few moments after however and simply stood there with her arms folded across her chest, shaking that blonde head full of hair at him. Lucas plastered a genuine smile on his face and before long both of them had inched towards their respective apartments. Both of the young adults turned to open their doors and then turned to face each other to say farewell.

"So, I guess I'll see you around, huh, Ranger Rick? Maybe the next time we meet, you'll be a bit more experienced in this new world." She winked and before Lucas could remember that he still didn't know the girl's name, she slammed the door. Lucas glanced in horror as the window right next to the girl's door started to shake from the aftermath of the door slam. He carefully shut his own door as soon as he was inside and stood with his back towards the door, glancing at all the boxes waiting to be unpacked. Lucas stared at the boxes yet he didn't even take them into account. All he could picture was the girl's blonde locks and her bright blue eyes sparkling up at him.

 _Maybe New York won't be as bad as I thought._

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 **So I hope you guys liked it. I think this might be a story with many chapters so, in advance, I apologize if I don't update this regularly. Leave comments and reviews below please!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi guys! How's your day going? Mine's great but I still gotta get ready for exams. Ugh. Anyways, hope you enjoyed the last chapter. Maybe you'll like this one better! Enjoy!**

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It's been at least two weeks since Lucas had packed all his bags and headed to the Big Apple from the great state of Texas. Everything in New York was pretty cool and having Zay to keep him company was one of the more happier things in his life so far.

Having to listen to the girl next door play her loud heavy metal music was, in fact, not.

 _There goes the guitar solo._ Lucas groaned as the music picked up speed and pressed his pillow around his head, trying to block out the wailing coming from the thin walls. He checked the alarm clock that was placed on a small wooden table next to his bed: _7:15._ Knowing that he wouldn't be able to shut his eyes any longer, Lucas rolled out of bed and lazily strolled to his kitchen area. Grabbing a pan and his grandma's famous chocolate chip recipe from one of the boxes laying on the floor, he proceeded to make them. Now that he was a tad further away from the music and closer to the smell of chocolate, his happy mood returned. Just as he flipped the first pancake onto a plate, a loud and consistent knock filled the tiny apartment. His whistling faltered. _Who would come at 7 in the morning? Zay never would, he's probably not even awake yet._ The knocking grew louder and more impatient and Lucas tripped over the unpacked boxes in his haste to unlock the door. As soon as he did, though, he knew his stubbed toes were worth it.

Her hair was different today, piled on top her head in a bun, and her T-shirt and jeans were splattered with random colors of what looked like acrylic paint. She played with a few loose strands of hair that perfectly framed her face and her eyebrows were raised in question. "You planning to share those delicious yummies you're making? I can smell them from my art corner and damn, I'm really hungry and too terrible at cooking to ever make those."

Lucas scratched the back his neck and glanced at the mess of boxes and packing peanuts behind him. "Well, I mean, if you can stand the sight of boxes that you can come on in." The girl didn't even bother with hearing the last part of his sentence. By the time he said it, she had brushed past him and perched herself on the only available seat in the kitchen. Her wide blue eyes stared daggers at him as Lucas made his way to the short stack of pancakes he made. He started flipping the last two and tried to defuse the awkwardness. She beat him to it though. "So, what's your real name, Huckleberry? Mine's Maya Hart." As he introduced himself, she stuck out her small hand for a handshake and Lucas shook it cautiously. Maya's hands were soft and not calloused at all, unlike Lucas's.

After Lucas had flipped the last chocolate chip pancake and placed the pancakes in two separate plates, the two sat in silence and chewed their pancakes thoughtfully. This time it was his turn to diffuse the awkwardness. "So… Have you always lived in New York? I already know you like it so much, maybe you can tell me why?" Lucas smirked, feeling proud of his cheeky response. Maya bluntly rolled her eyes and walked over to the sink, setting her empty plate in it. "Always grew up here, always loved it. Anymore nosy questions? Wanna know my social number? My childhood address?" She swung her jean clad legs around the front of her seat and rested her head in her hands in an innocent manner. Now it was Lucas's turn to do the eye rolling.

"Please, I'm not a creep nor am I that obsessed with you." He too placed his plate in the sink and sat back down. Both sat there staring at each other, the quiet hum of the refrigerator being the only source of noise. Maya gently peeled a piece of dried paint from her shirt sleeve. "Got any plans today, Ranger Rick?" She had pulled her phone out and hadn't payed attention to the small smile spreading across Lucas's face as she said the nickname. To be completely honest, Lucas never had plans. Zay came over once or twice so far over the course of their time in New York, but as Zay explained to him, he was too busy being popular. So all Lucas had done so far was unpack and sign up for jobs at veterinary clinics downtown. So far only one had taken him into consideration. _If only you had become a vet, then everyone would have wanted you to work for them._

Maya's chair screeching against the tile floor almost caused him to cover his ears for protection. Maya didn't even seem to be fazed by the chair however, she headed for the door, texting nonstop the whole time. "Hey since you never answered me, I'm guessing that you don't have anything. How about you join my friends and I? They brought a new friend with them. Maybe you and the new kid can become besties and I won't have to come home to always see your lights on", she joked as she unlocked Lucas's front door. Lucas shrugged. "Sure, why the hell not?"

Lucas barely caught her directions to meet outside the building in twenty minutes because she was already halfway to her own apartment. _Thank god we are the only people on this floor. Maybe that's why no one else lives up here: Maya's too loud._ He chuckled to himself. Searching through his closet to find his warmest coat and sweater to brave the New York winter, Lucas tried to think where exactly she could be taking him. Well, judging from her friends, it could probably be anywhere. He had met, or more correct, _heard_ , Maya's friends all the time. They would come late at night and were just as loud as her. He seemed to be able to know that there were always two of them and one seemed to be a girl, the other a boy. The girl sounded like she was constantly smiling and the boy, well, the boy had an obnoxious laugh that his family down in Texas could probably hear.

After Lucas piled on the layers to keep him warm, he grabbed his keys and started to make his way down to the entrance of the apartment complex to wait for Maya. The snow fell around him, making all the cars and benches a pure white color. He checked his watch. Twenty five minutes had already passed. Before Lucas, could even get mad, Maya trundled down the stairs in a long pea coat, her blonde hair covered with a purple sparkly beanie. "You ready to meet your future best friends, Hop-along?"

Too bad Maya didn't see the look of uncertainty cross across his face before he slipped on ice and hit the ground hard. She stood there and laughed before helping him back up.

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 **Okay, so what do you think of the story so far? Let me know in the comments! Also, where do you think Maya is taking Lucas to meet up with the rest of the gang?**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hi guys! I know I updated this really late but I've just been so busy. I decided the best option to upload these is on the weekends but hey, during Christmas break, I'll be able to write a lot more! Thanks for reading the story and please leave reviews. Enjoy!**

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It felt like two hours had passed before Lucas and Maya had finally reached their destination. Maya had demanded they walk to the place because she loved looking at the snow. Lucas obliged, only because he loved the snow too. Though the idea of walking in a picture perfect Christmas Wonderland _seemed_ like a good idea, it ended up being the exact opposite. A thick ice covered the ground, causing the friends walking to grab on to each other before either one of them could take another toss. Sadly, both fell at least three times. Finally, Maya had managed to slowly guide Lucas towards a few stairs aiming down and carefully they climbed towards a door with _Topanga's Bakery_ printed in fancy letters. "That's an unusual name for a bakery," Lucas said as the bells on the top of the door rang when Maya yanked open the door. "Yeah, well, don't tell that to Riley. That's her mom's name. In fact, this is her mom's bakery."

Lucas stood stunned for a minute but eventually followed Maya into the warm room. People lined the bookcase, others sat at the small tables, and some were standing in line ordering drinks. "Wow. Business seems to be doing pretty well." Maya wasn't even listening though. She had wandered towards the couches placed strategically in front of the fireplace and was animatedly talking to a pair sitting there. Lucas inferred they were Maya's friends, so slowly, he walked over and pretended to be examining the pattern on the chair until Maya had introduced him. The girl sitting there, Riley, seemed friendly since her immediate response to seeing him was to give him a hug. She had brown hair tucked behind her ears and falling just about the shoulder. The boy, Farkle, sent a happy nod Lucas's way and continued to fiddle with the tea bag string on the side of his mug. Lucas and Maya grabbed the chairs next to them and Maya started blabbering about their walk over here. Lucas watched her, the cute way her hands flew around as if she was conducting an orchestra and the way her eyebrows rose up whenever she emphasized a word. She caused the group to laugh in her descriptive retelling of Lucas slipping and falling on a small dog. Before long, all of them were going around telling their bad weather stories. Riley was in the middle of telling the hilarious story of how her father had climbed to the top of a tree to retrieve his umbrella when all of a sudden, Farkle stood up and waved to someone behind all of them. He poked Riley in the side. "Hey, he made it."

"Who made it?" Maya got up and was turned around, bobbing her head up and down in an attempt to spot the new friend. Lucas secretly did too. He wasn't sure what to expect. Farkle had gotten up and moved to collect the guy, who was conveniently not facing them as he hung his coat up. When he turned around though, Lucas almost fell out of his chair, "Zay?"

Zay turned towards him and a smile spread across his face, showing all his pearly whites.. His dark black hair was covered with little snowflakes and blue boots he wore were dragging in a lot of snow. "Uh, how do you guys know each other?" Riley had a confused puppy dog look drawn on her face. They both turned towards the other to see which one would explain.

"Well, my boy and I go way back. We grew up in Texas together, moved here together, and plan to get married together," Zay joked as he took the an empty seat in front of the group. The other's reactions were pretty close to how Lucas was feeling on the inside. "What a small world after all." Maya grinned cheekily at Lucas and took a sip of her chamomile tea. Lucas just rolled his eyes but on the inside his heart soared. They all sent grins around to each other and had generously started up their conversation again, this time including Zay's hilarious stories too. One thing was worrying Lucas, however. Maya had been staring curiously at him the whole time that they were there and even though it was weird, Lucas tried his best not to do anything too stupid.

Finally the night had wrapped up. Riley had given each friend a heartfelt hug and had departed in an air of vanilla and mint, Farkle in tow. Zay had decided to stay back a few minutes, as he had caught a hiring sign on the front of the shop and desperately needed a job. Maya and Lucas were not going to leave him alone and frankly, neither wanted the wonderful night to come to a close. "It's always great seeing Farkle and Riles. Ever since we all went to college, we haven't been able to hang out that much." Lucas nodded and percieved that Maya maybe had some feelings to talk about. "Well, you must have other friends, right? Like at your school or something." Maya shrugged. "Never found the right time to hang out with my other friends. Those two… we've all been best friends since forever. I could never picture myself with anyone else." Maya shook her head, drawing herself away from the peaceful daze that the fireplace seemed to be lulling them into. "Any friends back home in Texas? Besides the cows I mean."

Lucas ignored the little jab and started to describe his old friends, their great time hanging out in the sun with the cool wind whipping against their backs. It almost made Lucas tear up, just remembering it all was too much. His voice trailed off though, after Zay had walked over to them and all wrapped themselves in their coat and hustled out the door. Maya and Lucas had immmediately hailed a cab, first dropping off Zay and then heading to the apartment complex. It seemed as if everyone had gone to sleep already in their complex. The faint lights from above cast a glow around them and together, Lucas and Maya made it upstairs to their floor. No sounds were made, only because they were the only two apartments up there.

Maya slowly turned on her heel and kicked a few pebbles around. Lucas did the same. Neither wanted the night to end. "Hey, you want some cake? My mom sent some and I haven't had the chance to open it. You can be the first to try it." Maya grinned and Lucas happily agreed before checking his watch : _11:00. What's a few less hours of sleep going to do?_ Maya unlocked the door and pushed it open. Lucas's heart practically stopped. Right in the entrance hung bright lights, laced around the frame into the living room. Paintings and drawings covered the walls, and some paint was even splattered all over the furniture. Even though lights graced the foyer, they seemed to be all around the house, in place of an actual lamp. The room was so cozy, it almost seemed to make the homesickness in Lucas's chest shrink. Maya wearily looked up at him, eyes sparkling from the white lights around. "Sorry, about the mess and all the lights. I tried to be more festive for Christmas this year, but I may have gone a bit overboard." Maya blushed and removed her hat, shaking her hair loose from the snow. Lucas just shook his head in disbelief. "Maya, this just might be the most beautiful house I have ever seen. This is amazing."

Her eyes light up from his approval and immediately she was on another task. Grabbing Lucas's coat, she hung it on the back peg above the couch and headed to her kitchen, already cutting a slice of the chocolate and vanilla swirl cake. Lucas had followed her in, but had paused so many times that he eventually just sat down at the small purple dining table and looked around him. Some paintings featured mostly black, with a few peeks of yellow. Others were high definition, a real time telling of apparently all the things Maya had seen in her lifetime. It was at that moment Lucas noticed the painting easel that sat in the corner. Judging from the position of it, on the other side of that wall would be Lucas's bed. Lucas almost got butterflies just thinking that Maya and him were in that close proximity all through the night. She had told him she made the best art at night, and let's face it, Lucas was in bed at like 8:30. The painting laying on the easel was what really had drawn his attention. It was a square board and all that covered it were two green dots. Little flecks of gold were around it along with dashes to make it look like an iris. _Huh. They almost look like-_

"Here it is, Huckleberry. Eat up." Maya pushed a plate of the cake in front of him and went down to sit across as she dug into her own cake. The cake was lined with chocolate on the inside and Lucas about died from happiness with each bite.

"You know, it's been a while since I've actually eaten a cake." Lucas noticed the look of confusion plastered on Maya's face so he trudged on. "My family never believed in celebrating birthdays. It was always _oh you're older this year? You receive the gift of working harder._ I hated it so much but I grew to tolerate it because it was all I ever knew." Lucas slowly raised his eyes, too scared to see Maya's reaction. What he saw was understanding though. "Yeah, I know how that feels. My mom constantly worked overtime and was never there to celebrate with and my dad… Well, he just never even showed up." She wouldn't look up at Lucas but instead made designs with her fork using the leftover chocolate frosting. Instinctively, Lucas reached out and patted her hand in a comfort. Her hand was still soft and Lucas wanted to just keep touching it but he knew it would be too creepy. So with a sigh, he moved his hand back, picked up both of their empty plates and placed them in the sink. Maya watched him carefully until finally both were staring at each other awkwardly. Lucas checked the time. _1.00._

"Well, I'm going to head out. Thanks for the cake and thank your mother for me too." Lucas tipped an imaginary cowboy hat and Maya smirked. _So much for not being a cowboy._ She ushered him out, already yawning as she opened the door. Lucas put on his coat and exited, unlocking his door to his apartment as Maya watched from her own. "See ya tomorrow, Ranger Rick. Sleep tight." Lucas braced himself for the slam of the door but it never came. Her door had quietly clicked shut and loud music was already blaring. Thankfully, it wasn't heavy metal, but instrumental. Lucas could fall asleep to that.

He let himself into the apartment and didn't even bother taking off his coat or shoes. He maneuvered around the boxes and flopped down on his bed, already dozing off. One thing kept him up though. Maya was awake right next to him, painting away. Her muffled voice passed through the thin walls and Lucas was surprised to hear it sound so good. Her voice rose in pitches and decreased in tones but never once did she stop. Lucas must have never stayed up late enough to actually hear her voice. It was too late now though. Lucas was already closing his eyes, Maya's voice trailing in and out of his conscious, just like it always was.

As she carried a high note, Lucas fell fast asleep, dreaming of chocolate cake and bright lights.


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